Established Hives

The information below is aimed at guiding you through ordering brand new equipment. I should mention, however, that often times local beekeepers sell complete hives that are already established, which may be very attractive to you. At our meeting, hopefully someone will have a name or phone number to offer of a known seller of hives. I can try to do some investing myself, as well.

Hives:

The assumption here is that you're starting 2 hives, each with 2 deep hive bodies and 2 medium supers. For the sake of simplification, Bill advises sticking with the medium supers, which overwinter better and will produce more from the same amount of labor as a shallow super. When shopping for wood, be aware that sometimes more than one grade is offered (Better Bee = 'select' & 'commercial'); it's worth it to spend up for the premium wood. 'Hive kits'- the already assembled options, usually feature the plastic frames. The Better Bee offers an unassembled kit with wood frames, but if you order 2 a la carte, you'll save $25. Of course, you'll probably make up that savings when you buy the necessary assembly tools, etc.., but you might be happy to have those around. Also, beesource.com offers plans if you are enviously economical & want to build from scratch
Deep Hive Bodies (4)
Deep Frames (40) the Better Bee has 3 types of wood frames. In Bill's opinion, the easiest to work with are the 'wedged split' frames, which you may also see listed as open bar/open bottoms in other catalogs.
Medium Supers (4) or more
Medium Frames (40) or more
Crimp-wired Foundation order these to match your frame order; (40) deep, (40) medium or more
Your first season, 4 supers total is probably fine. Like all things bought, sold & assembled, there is a margin of error that you should allow for - so more frames/foundations than necessary may save you. If you're getting nucs this year (which are each 5 frames) you may still want to order 10 total for each deep, and consider the extras back ups.
Bottom Boards (2) pine reversible
Screened Bottom Boards (2) varroa screens
Inner Covers (2)
Outer Covers (2) telescoping outer cover. Get them in parts & put together yourself.
Queen Excluders (2) metal, listed under tools
Bee escape or fume board (1) triangle escape; the fume board is what works with either the stinky butyric anhydride (Honey Robber), or the Fischers Bee Quick that Russ told us is made from cherries & almonds
Entrance Reducers (2) also called Entrance Cleats
Feeders there are 3 ways to do it: a resevoir the size of a frame inside the hive; a jar of syrup which attaches to a landing board; & feeding from a can or jar through the hole in the inner cover. To be discussed...

Tools:

Notebook/Hive Records, pencil
Smoker most beginner kits come with the 4 x 7" model; the 4 x 10" is a better bet (I suppose that because we're new at this, it's better not to run out of smoke...) the Better Bee Advanced Pro Smoker, is $4 extra and has some insulation/anti-burn implementations
Hive Tool look for the 10" model, and consider getting 2!
Capping Scraper this was listed as an 'uncapping fork'; Bill prefers wood, there are a few other options
Frame Spacer allows you to correctly space each brood chamber and super to hold only 9 frames, which should keep the weight of your hive down and the thickness of your comb up - making it easier to scrape. You only need one of these...
Bee Wire, Zinc Metal Eyelets, & Punch all for assembling wooden frames
Nailing board, nails, hammer
Glue wood glue or gorilla glue
Bee Brush good to have, but less is more or you'll anger your bees

Protective Clothing:

Suit; full or half -
Veil with suit or separate; some need to pair with a helmet.
Gloves, leather or rubber -
Bill says that beginners would be smarter to start with leather as they offer more protection (they reach farther up your arm) and better dexterity. However, as your skills progress, be aware that leather stiffens, and that as your gloves collect stings the alarm pheromones will remain present the next time you visit your hive - think about washing them sometimes.
Boot Bands

Bee Food:

Pollen Patties - BeePro or make your own; this is a powdered substance that you might want to have on hand, just in case
Sugar Syrup - 1:1 ration in Spring, 2:1 in Fall

Medications:

here are some that you may want to keep on hand (NOFA is offering an organic varroa mite control workshop on Sunday 2/17 at VTC in Randolph...)

Fumagillin - for nosema
Mite-away II
Apiguard
Api-life Var (try brushy mountain for this)

Bill's Optionals & Extras

knife or boxcutter
duct tape
carrying case for tools
matches, lighter
uncapping electric knife
extractor (check with others in your community first)
frame grips - can be helpful if frames get stuck
text book - your choice
hive wrap-felt or tarpaper